Safety-related regulatory changes will go into effect on Dec 31 concerning all children’s products that will be available for sale. These changes could have had very difficult impacts on children’s products and apparel produced in and imported from developing countries. Congress, domestic children’s product manufacturers and the recently formed Coalition of Small Batch Importers worked closely with the Consumer Product Safety Commission to help insure that the safety standards would be met, but that the testing required would be within the financial resources of – and take into account the logistical challenges faced by – small businesses in the United States and artisan groups all over the globe.

Through the efforts of the Coalition of Small Batch Importers and others, the Consumer Product Safety Commission will allow certain exemptions from “third-party testing” for several of these standards (total lead content, phthalates, and wearing apparel (flammability)) when the products are produced by “small batch companies” and are imported by “small batch importers.” All involved will still need to ensure that the safety standards are met, however.

Do you have questions on how these changes affect you and what you do and do not have to do???

Dial up this Friday’s teleconference organized by the Fair Trade Federation, The Coalition of Small Batch Importers, and Sandler Trade LLC with Dean Woodard of the CPSC. Again, it’s on this Friday, December 9, 2011, beginning at 1p EST. Please call 1-270-400-2000; your participant access code is 9576258 to access the teleconference.

Dean will cover the latest on the regulations going into effect on Dec 31, answers on how often you have to test products – every shipment or every year or ?????, who is responsible for having a certificate of compliance, the small batch exemptions to third-party testing, and how to register with the CPSC as a small batch importer.

If you have other questions you’d like Dean to address, please email them to Marideth Sandler at sandler@sandlertrade.com by 10a EST on Friday.